


Monkey With A Smoking Gun

by JoLicious77



Category: Lucifer (TV)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-14
Updated: 2020-11-14
Packaged: 2021-03-09 19:01:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 12,523
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27561151
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JoLicious77/pseuds/JoLicious77
Summary: While trying to solve the case of a murdered zookeeper, Lucifer tries to make peace with the growing seriousness of his relationship with Chloe.Dan works towards fully accepting Lucifer.
Relationships: Chloe Decker/Lucifer Morningstar
Comments: 15
Kudos: 137





	Monkey With A Smoking Gun

Lucifer couldn’t remember exactly when the last time it had rained in Los Angeles; but he knew it had been months. But today seemed to be making up for it as he listened to it pour generously onto the roof above them.

Normally on the days he woke up next to Chloe and looked at her, the sun was playing across her beautiful, sleeping face. But today it was shadowed as the sun remained stubbornly behind the black clouds. It didn’t matter though, sun or rain, she was still the most beautiful thing he ever had the privilege of seeing in person.

While she slept he reflected on the night prior, the games with Trixie had gone late and after she had gone to bed, Chloe and Lucifer lingered on the couch, sipping wine and watching a movie. Less than 10 minutes into the film though, Chloe had fallen asleep. It had been a very long day and she was exhausted. 

Lucifer had hesitated, he had no plan to stay over and had yet to do so with Trixie being in the house. As if reading his mind, Trixie had appeared next to him, in her pajamas and rubbing her tired eyes. 

“I just needed some water” she whispered to Lucifer.  
“Oh, alright” he replied, unsure if she was at an age where she could fend for herself; but while he contemplated, she was already in the kitchen getting a glass and filling it. 

Walking back to her room, Trixie looked over her shoulder and smiled at Lucifer, “See you in the morning, Lucifer” with that Cheshire grin. 

Before he could answer, she slipped back into her room and shut the door.  
It was all the approval Lucifer needed and so he picked Chloe up and carried her to bed. She didn’t stir even after he took her hair out of the ponytail she wore and tucked her under the covers. 

Lucifer himself was exhausted and didn’t realize how much so until he lay down next to her and was  
asleep within seconds.  
Now, hours later, he has leaned up on an elbow, looking at Chloe’s sleeping face while listening to the  
rain outside. While doing so, he realized that it was the first time in history that he had ever slept with a  
woman without sleeping with a woman. 

The realization sent a ripple of surprise through him but rather than think about it, he quietly climbed  
out of bed and decided to start the dreary Sunday on a positive note.  
“Is that…is that mom’s robe?” Trixie stood in front of Lucifer with a wrinkled nose.  
“Oh, this old thing?” Lucifer glances down at the long pink and flowered satin robe he was able to find  
and wrap himself in. He was standing at the stove, pouring pancake batter into a skillet, “Yes, it’s your  
mother’s; rather comfortable though” he finishes half to himself. 

“Did you make coffee?” Trixie asks, stepping around him to the coffee pot.  
“I did, but it most certainly is not for 13 year-old girls; orange juice is in the fridge.”

Sighing, Trixie opens the fridge and pulls out the carton.  
“Where’s mom?”  
“Sleeping.” Lucifer answers, using the skillet to flip the pancake to Trixie’s amazement.  
“Is that my robe?” Chloe’s sleepy voice asks while stepping into the kitchen with messy hair and still in  
the pajamas she’d dressed in the night before.  
“It was your robe” Lucifer grins, “but I think the color really brings out my eyes”  
Chloe laughs and steps up to him. After a quick kiss, she wraps her arms around his waist and he loops  
one arm around her shoulders and with his other hand he holds the skillet handle and flips the pancake  
in the skillet. 

“Coffee is hot” Lucifer says, kissing the top of Chloe’s head.  
“Not just the coffee” she whispers, grinning up at him.  
“MOM! Gross!” Trixie exclaims from across the bar.

But rather than be mortified, Chloe just laughs and ducks away from Lucifer to pour herself a cup of the  
coffee he had made.  
During breakfast they discuss what to do during the rainy day and a decision is made that a movie  
marathon is the smartest decision. 

And after their food is finished, Trixie is tasked with cleaning up and Lucifer excuses himself to take a  
shower.  
Once out of the shower, Lucifer steps from the bathroom into Chloe’s bedroom with a towel around his  
waist and using another to rub his wet hair.  
“Hey you” Chloe smiles, standing in the middle of the room  
“Hey back” he crosses to her, smiling heartly; taking her in his arms, they kiss deeply but Chloe’s moan  
shifts to a groan when she hears Trixie calling for her.  
“Hold that thought” she mumbles pulling away and heading out the door.  
Lucifer sighs and then turns to face the same clothes he had on the day before. He hated wearing the  
same thing twice in a row, but he really had no choice at this point. 

While he dressed in his pants and shirt only, Lucifer allows himself to think about the last twenty four  
hours; the sexless snuggles, the cooking for his girlfriend and her daughter, the plan to lay around the  
house and watch movies all day and suddenly a rising feeling of fear and uncertainties begin to arise.  
“Sorry” Chloe’s voice breaks into his thoughts while she steps back into the room, “she needed help with  
the dishwasher” she explains with a wave of a hand, “anyways, before we go back down there, I wanted  
to give you something.”

“Oh do you?” Lucifer asks bobbing an eyebrow.  
“Lucifer” she loud-whispers his name and battles a grin, “No, look”, stepping around him she opens a  
drawer on her dresser and motions towards it.  
Stepping up next to her, Lucifer looks inside to see it’s empty.  
“Did someone steal your sensible sweaters, Detective? Is that our next case?”  
“No!” she laughingly replies, “it’s for you, I cleaned a little space out of my closet too because I know the  
suits have to hang.”

“Wait, what?” Lucifer asks truly confused.  
“I mean, as sexy as you looked in my robe today, I figured you may want to have something of your own  
here; you know, for whenever you decide to stay.”

“I…”Lucifer stammers  
“You don’t have to fill it up or anything” Chloe quickly scrambles seeing his surprise, “I just wanted you  
to know there is space here for anything you may want to leave”.  
“Yes, yes, of course” he says in an undertone; but while he stares into the open, empty drawer he feels  
like he is staring into an endless abyss. 

“Mom! Lucifer!” Trixie’s voice rings up the stairs, “Movie time!”  
“Shall we?” Chloe asks kindly, touching Lucifer’s elbow while he is still staring at the drawer.  
“What?” He asks, looking at her and the look on his face says he’s forgotten where he was.  
“Trixie? Movies?” Chloe chuckles but with a hint of concern in her voice.  
“Oh right, right. You go on ahead, I’ll be down in a jiff.” Lucifer’s smile is strained. 

Once Chloe leaves the room, Lucifer picks up his phone and dials Amenadiel.  
“Hello brother!” Amenadiel answers  
“I’m going to hang up and you’re going to call me back and tell me you need me to come over” Lucifer  
says curtly.  
“What?” Amenadiel ask but the line is already dead.

Lucifer anxiously paces the room for a few moments until his phone rings; answering it he hears  
Amenadiel’s voice, “Hello brother I’m just calling you back since you said I should say you needed me to come over?”

“Yes, aces, see you soon.” Disconnecting the call Lucifer smiles and reaching for his jacket and vest, he  
slings them over his shoulder and heads downstairs.  
“Bad news I’m afraid” he announces, appearing in the living room while Trixie is putting a DVD into the  
player, “Amenadiel has rung, seems I’m needed there.”

“Oh” Chloe says surprised, “I hope everything’s OK”  
“Surely it is” Lucifer says easily, “sorry I have to run out on movie day, but duty calls.”  
“Right” Chloe says trying to believe him as he’s never lied to her, but still feeling like something is off,  
“Well, let me know if everything is okay.”  
She has crossed the room and stands in front of him.  
“Of course” he assures her.  
“You’d tell me though, right? If things weren’t OK?” Looking up at him with anxiousness  
“Things couldn’t be more perfect; I’ll call you later” Lucifer lowers his head and kisses her gently.  
“BLECH!!!!!!!!” Trixie exclaims loudly from behind them.  
“Sorry, I should go” Lucifer pulls away  
“Tell Charlie I said hi!” Trixie adds while Lucifer waves an absent goodbye and steps outside into the  
pouring rain. 

“What are you doing here, Lucifer?” Amenadiel asks in a frustrated tone, opening the door to his  
wayward brother.  
“You called ME, brother” Lucifer says sounding exasperated, stepping around his brother and into the  
house.  
“Lucifer!” Linda exclaims surprised to see him in her living room.  
“DOCTOR!” Lucifer shouts excitedly jogging down the stairs and into the same room as her, “just the  
person I wanted to see.”

“Amenadiel said you were up to something” she narrows her eyes and crosses her arms.  
“Up to something? No, no, no, not at all; just need a little professional advice; may I?” But before she  
can answer, he is already sitting on the couch, legs crossed and hands anxiously wringing.  
“Alright” Linda sits down across from him with a groan, “since you’re here, what seems to be the  
problem, Lucifer?”

Lucifer hesitates for a moment and then decides to just dive right in, “The Detective has given me a  
drawer.”  
“I don’t….” Linda purses her lips, tilts her head to the side, “I’m sorry I don’t follow”.  
“A. DRAWER.” He enunciates slowly. 

After staring at Linda expectantly and realizing she is not comprehending the magnitude of the  
importance, Lucifer clears his throat and scoots to the edge of the sofa, “She gave me an empty drawer  
in her dresser AND a small space in the closet for my hanging clothes!”

“Okay” Linda tries to bury her annoyance, “So your GIRLFRIEND gave you a tiny amount of space in her  
area for you to keep some of your things there and this is sending you spiraling, because?”  
“It’s not just that” Lucifer quickly adds and glancing around to make sure they were alone, Lucifer lowers  
his voice to a whisper, “Last night? We slept together but we didn’t SLEEP together.”  
“Alright, so, you had one night…ONE NIGHT of sexless sleep followed by a morning of, let me guess,  
breakfast with Chloe AND Trixie and then you were offered a tiny space to keep some personal affects  
and you have a complete and utter meltdown?”  
“Is ‘meltdown’ part of your professional opinion?” Lucifer asks angrily  
“You are sitting on the couch in my LIVING ROOM on a SUNDAY, so no it’s not my PROFESSIONAL  
opinion it’s my get-over-yourself-this-is-called-a-relationship-opinion.”

“DOCTOR!” Lucifer exclaims equal parts horrified and intrigued.  
“I’m sorry, Lucifer” Linda sighs heartly, “but come ON, you’ve been alive for practically…well…ever and I  
understand THIS part of existence with regards to matters of the heart is all new for you, but surely you’ve see a few episodes of Ally McBeal or Sex and the City or Melrose Place?  
I mean, honestly Lucifer at this point I don’t know what to say to you. You and Chloe love each other and  
LOVE means empty drawers for another person to fill up.”

“I’m used to filling up empty voids, Doctor, but nothing so…so…boring” Lucifer interjects.  
“Lucifer” Linda take a deep breath and tries to calm her overwhelming feeling of annoyance, “What  
about the empty drawer sent you packing, so to speak?”  
“I don’t KNOW Doctor, that’s why I’m here. I mean, I realize that is a normal thing offered in normal  
relationships but, I mean, are we, you know, NORMAL?”

“Well,” Linda begins calmly, “I had a baby with an angel. AN ANGEL. Do you think THAT is normal? Who is to say what is normal and what isn’t, Lucifer? Relationships are what we make them. Besides, what  
about Eve?”  
“Eve?” Lucifer is taken by surprise at the mention of his old flame.  
“Yes. Eve. She LIVED with you Lucifer, you had a relationship with her before Chloe” Linda tries to reason  
with him.

“Yes, yes I know that but Eve, that was….different. She lived with me because she had nowhere else to  
go and, you know better than anyone Linda that it wasn’t what Chloe and I have together at all.”  
“So, is this really about the empty drawer?”  
“I don’t….” Lucifer struggles with the tangle of emotions rushing through his mind and heart, “I just have  
never….”

Linda hesitates, watching her friend but also her client struggle with his feelings in front of her. Not for  
the first time she wonders if she should push forward and share personal antidotes and ideas instead of  
sticking to the therapist playbook. But as she looks into the face of her son’s uncle, she forgets for a  
moment that he is her client. 

“Lucifer, this is the natural progression of a relationship; it’s not like she’s asking you to move in.”  
“Not yet!” He raises a finger in the air, “but that’s just it, isn’t it? One day I’m roaming around Los  
Angeles in a sports car and the next I’m going to soccer games driving a minivan!”

“Wow, okay first of all Trixie doesn’t even play soccer and second of all, do you think this is some kind of  
Operation Domesticate the Devil? Because it really is just normal relationship progression.  
Mainly, you need to come to terms with what you really want and when you do, you need to talk to  
Chloe about it.”

“I do know what I want, I want us to be together but it’s all just so….”  
“Terrifyingly normal?”  
As Lucifer contemplates he hears Charlie crying from another room.  
“Well, Doctor” Lucifer begins, slowly standing up, “I’ll let you see to the child.” 

But Linda looks tired and frustrated; his first inclination is to simply turn and leave to not face all the  
varying emotions in him. 

“Thank you, Linda” he says gently, “I am grateful for all that you have done for me, please know that.”  
She smiles with a hint of sadness, “I know, Lucifer, but I think it’s time you start to try and have some of  
these conversations with Chloe.”

Quietly he nods and heads for the door. 

“Don’t forget dinner here in a couple of nights, Lucy!” Amenadiel calls after him. 

Monday morning brings an early call from Chloe to Lucifer to ask for him to come to the latest crime  
scene. 

The rain from the day before has made room for a regular sunny, LA day; Lucifer enjoys the drive with  
the top down on his convertible and is surprised that the latest murder has been committed at the zoo.  
When he arrives at the office where the murder occurred, there are a few officers on scene as they  
normally are and Ella is photographing the body. 

Chloe doesn’t see him yet, she is standing near Ella, looking at the victim who lies on the floor, face up.  
Her hair is back as always, and she’s dressed incredibly sensible.  
But the look she has on her face, a combination of determination and respect for the poor dead man  
remind Lucifer of her strength but also her unyielding compassion. He could simply stare at her all day.  
Then, suddenly he remembers where he is and glancing over he see’s Ella has stopped taking pictures  
and is looking at him with a sly grin on her face.

“Hey Lucifer” she calls out in a teasing fashion.  
“Morning Miss Lopez” he clears his throat and walks to where Chloe is.  
Turning, her eyes lock with his and his breath catches a little in the back of his throat.  
“Morning” she half whispers and he’s annoyed he can’t kiss her right then and there.  
Instead he settles on a smile and a quick squeeze of her hand.  
“So” he begins, forcing himself to look away from her and at the gruesome scene before them, “what do  
we have here?”  
“Bill Kesler, 47 years old, head zookeeper here for the last 4 years. He was shot once right through the  
heart” Ella shakes her head, “no sign of the murder weapon so far.”

“It looks like he got into a physical altercation before he was shot” Chloe motions towards the bruising  
on his face and the cut on his lip.  
“Yes, and by a quick glance, it looks like he got a little skin under his nails that will hopefully point to the  
killer. Looking over there,” she motions towards the opposite side of the room, “appears that’s where  
the struggle started” Ella hangs her camera around her neck and walks towards the door to reenact how  
it happened.  
“Whoever did this came in through the door” she slams the door shut behind her, startling everyone,  
“and then, Bill here was probably over there behind his desk” she jogs across the room and stands  
behind the desk that faces the door. “See? He pushed back from the desk and stood up so quickly that  
his chair fell over” motioning towards the chair that is upended behind her.

“THEN, the killer is crossing the room” she jogs back to the door and starts walking towards the desk  
when she is near it, she turns her body the opposite direction as if she is playing the role of victim again.  
“When he reaches our victim, he hits him and Bill goes tumbling backwards onto the desk” while she  
fakes falling backward, “and the papers go flying” pointing to the mess of papers on the floor. 

“They continue to scuffle” while she flails around the room until she’s standing back over the dead body,  
“until the killer pulls out a gun and BANG! Right to the chest. And the bad guy had to be a little way  
away because we did find a shell casing over there, 9 millimeter, by the way” she gestures to the area  
marked off. “And, more good news in the evidence department for a change, there is blood on the  
papers so we’re having that tested to see if any of it belongs to the killer.”

“Bravo, Miss Lopez!” Lucifer claps, “excellent reenactment and also, wonderful news on all the physical  
evidence for a change!”

“Well thank you, but we’ll have to see what it yields before we get too excited.” Ella sighs and glances  
back down at the victim, “poor guy just wanted to take care of animals.”  
“So Ella, do we know if there are any security videos around the place?” Chloe asks trying to maintain  
focus. 

“No, nothing here, there are some that record the parking lot and the animal cages but nothing around  
the office.” She shrugs. 

“Do we know if any monkey’s have gotten out?” Lucifer ask seriously  
“Monkeys?” Chloe responds

“Yes, yes, monkeys they’re very clever you know, love a good smoke and are quite strong. Maybe one  
broke out and got their hands on a gun and came after the guy who keeps them caged up all day.”

“Are you…..are you seriously asking if this was homicide by primate?” Chloe asks dumbfounded.  
“Detective, they are bizarre little creatures, I certainly wouldn’t put it past one.”

But Ella is chuckling heartly, “No, no monkey did it; all cages are still locked, confirmed by camera” she  
motions over her shoulder.  
“Okay now that we have that cleared up” Chloe shakes her head, “we’ll start digging into the victim’s  
life. I know that Dan already has a few of his coworkers in the other building waiting to be questioned so  
Lucifer and I will head over there and we’ll meet you at the precinct later, Ella.”

After leaving the office, Lucifer and Chloe walk towards where the other zoo workers are waiting in a  
separate building. And just before they reach it, Chloe stops walking and takes Lucifer by the arm,  
pulling him with her.

“What?” He asks surprised as she hurries him to the side of the building and out of sight from anyone.  
But his words are cut off as she tosses her arms around his neck and pulls his mouth to hers. The kiss is  
passionate and filled with longing. 

Chloe sighs heavily, “Sorry but I’ve been wanting to do that since I saw you”  
“No need to apologize, you can kiss me anytime” for emphasis he leans into her and takes one more  
extended kiss.

Finally after pulling apart, Chloe smiles sweetly, “So we’re all OK then?”  
“What? Yes of course, why wouldn’t we be okay?” Lucifer seems confused. 

“Oh just, yesterday you seemed a little freaked out over the drawer…” she trails off.  
“Right” he says quietly, “well, if I’m being honest, which I always am with you, I am not ‘freaked out’, I  
was just…” but he’s cut off by the sound of Chloe’s phone ringing.  
Holding up a finger she glances at it and see’s it’s Dan.

“Come on” she turns and starts to stride quickly towards the building’s entrance, “we need to get to  
work.”

Aaron is the first person they talk to, a young man who was the second in command at the zoo. He is  
dressed in khakis, a zoo issued polo shirt and heavy, leather gloves to protect his hands from the  
massive eagle that he is holding. 

The bird is incredibly beautiful and exotic, as they get closer, it spreads it wings wide for a moment and  
shifts on Aaron’s hand.  
“Mine are bigger” Lucifer mutters as Chloe chuckles.  
She tries to not be distracted by it as they begin to chat with Aaron who explains that he came in early  
that morning and found his boss dead. 

“So with Mr. Kesler now gone, does that mean you take over as head zookeeper?” Chloe asks  
innocently.

“What?” Aaron asks taken by surprise, “No, not exactly, the board will appoint a new head zookeeper,  
possibly even someone from another zoo. Trust me, the last thing that I want is his job, the hours, the stress. 

I mean, his job is why he’s getting divorced.” The tidbit of information takes them by surprise.  
“Divorced?” Chloe asks with a little shock in her voice.  
“Yes” Aaron looks to her then Lucifer and back again, “Bill was going through a divorce and from what  
we all understood it was getting pretty nasty.”

“Excuse me,” a young blonde woman steps up to the trio talking and interrupts them, “can anyone tell  
me if Sandy is safe?”  
“Sandy?” Chloe asks, “Who’s Sandy?”  
“She’s Bill’s pet monkey. She came to work with him almost every day but Aaron said she wasn’t in the  
office when he found Bill” There is great alarm in the young lady’s voice.  
“Bill’s pet monkey?” Chloe asks shocked all over again.

“Ha! I KNEW IT!” Lucifer claps one time, startling the eagle into expanding his wings one more time.  
After taking a moment, they talk with Chasity, the young zoo employee who asked about the missing  
monkey and she explains that Sandy is with him at work every day. She also explains that the reason for  
the messy divorce is that Bill’s ex-wife was trying to fight for custody of the beloved family pet. Once  
they discovered the animal is missing, Chloe requests the employees search the zoo for the animal while  
she and Lucifer leave to talk to the victim’s family. 

They meet at the home that Bill’s soon-to-be ex-wife resides and after knocking on the door a woman  
with red eyes opens to them.  
“Mrs. Kesler?” Chloe asks, “we’re with the LAPD and wanted to ask you some questions about Bill?”  
“Come in, come in” she steps away from the door and ushers them inside, “please, call me Kelly” while  
leading them to the living room.

The home is humble but Chloe notices pictures of Kelly and Bill in happier times, generously decorating the space. 

Once inside and sitting on the couch, Chloe begins delicately, “We’re sorry to hear of your loss but we  
do have a few questions.”

“Yes of course, but can you tell me first if anyone has found Sandy?” She asks, tear-filled blue eyes dash  
between Chloe and Lucifer.

“Um, no, not yet but they are searching every inch of the zoo and as soon as we locate her we’ll let you  
know.”

Kelly puts her hands to her face and a fresh round of sobs escape, “You probably think it’s silly but, she’s  
been a part of our family for 15 years. Bill and I couldn’t have children and so Sandy was like our  
daughter.”

“Is that why your divorce had been dragged out and turned ugly? Because you were fighting over the primate?” Lucifer asks pointedly.

“What?” Kelly blinks her surprise.  
“We know you were in the middle of a divorce” Chloe begins  
“No!” Kelly shakes her head firmly, “I mean, yes we were but not anymore; we had been talking and  
reconciled, we had been married for 25 years and neither of us wanted it to end. Not really.”  
“So why the proceedings in the first place?” Chloe asks not fully believing the grieving widow in front of  
them. 

“A couple of years ago, Bill had a terrible accident and he almost died, took him months of physical  
therapy to get back on his feet. When he did recover, he started doing things that were completely out  
of character, it was like he took a page right out of the midlife crisis playbook. He bought a sports car,  
went skydiving….” She trails off.

“Got himself a girlfriend, did he?” Lucifer asks raising an eyebrow.  
“Yes” she says quietly, embarrassed.  
Chloe and Lucifer remain quiet while they watch her struggle to find the words; eventually, Kelly  
swallows hard and pushes on.

“He was seeing someone else for a while and that was the final straw so I filed for divorce. But then, he  
insisted he wasn’t seeing her anymore and begged me to at least go to counseling, so we did.  
And then he worked so hard at mending our relationship. Plus, we had Sandy together and it wasn’t fair  
for her to split her time between us.  
So last week I called my attorney and ended the proceedings, Bill was moving back in day after  
tomorrow. You can call and ask my attorney.”

“If you two patched things up, why didn’t anyone at his work share that?” Chloe asks still skeptical.  
“I don’t’ know but our counselor had suggested that Bill stop talking about our relationship to anyone  
that would listen, so maybe he just didn’t share that we had gotten back together?”

“Can you think of anyone else that may have wanted to harm him?” Chloe inquires  
“Yes, his ex-girlfriend, she’s been harassing him ever since they broke up.”

“And who is his ex?” Lucifer asks, intrigued by the layers of the deceased zookeeper  
“I don’t know” Kelly shakes her head, “He always refused to tell me and our counselor told me to not  
concern myself with the ‘who’ and just work on us.”

“Okay” Chloe nods, “so do you have an alibi for this morning between 5 and 7 AM?”  
“I was home until 6 and then I was at the gym down the street. You can check.”  
“We will” Chloe stands to leave  
“Detective” Kelly wrings her hands anxiously, “What about Sandy? Will someone let me know when  
she’s found?”

“Yes” Chloe states in a comforting tone, “we’ll let you know as soon as we find her. I promise.”  
After leaving the Kesler home, Chloe calls Linda on her cell phone. After brief pleasantries, Chloe briefly  
shares with Linda about the case she is currently working.  
“Linda, is it common for a marriage counselor to advise a client to not discuss their relationship with  
other people?”  
“Well” Linda beings thoughtfully, “it’s not uncommon especially if infidelity had been a part of it. Often  
it’s out of respect for the wronged party that you encourage them to get to a better place together  
before divulging any of your relationship details with others. It’s a trust building exercise.”  
“Okay” Chloe nods feeling the explanation makes sense, “Thanks Linda, I appreciate it.”  
“Any time, Chloe and look forward to seeing you for dinner tomorrow.”  
“Same” Chloe smiles as she drives, “I’ll bring the salad.” Before saying their goodbyes.  
Shortly thereafter she pulls into the precinct parking lot and see’s Lucifer leaning against the car waiting  
for her.  
“Detective,” Lucifer begins as they walk side by side towards the entrance, “I do want to talk to you  
about yesterday and I’m sorry I left in such a rush.”  
“It’s okay, Lucifer” Chloe says kindly while they continue to walk.  
“No” Lucifer stops walking abruptly and Chloe turns to face him, “no, it’s not okay. The truth is, well the  
truth is that it DID take me a little by surprise and I didn’t handle it well.”  
“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean…”  
“Please, just let me say this” he holds up a hand and continues quickly, “I’ve never had what we have,  
I’ve never in literally thousands of years, been in a relationship that is normal.  
I mean, it’s true that Eve stayed with me for a bit, but honestly that was just because she had nowhere  
else to go and we both know she didn’t mean to me what you do. 

So, I’m sorry that I DID panic a little yesterday but it certainly has nothing to do with you….with…us, it’s  
just me trying to understand how to navigate this extremely unfamiliar territory. And I certainly don’t  
want you making excuses for me and I’m sorry if I hurt your feelings. But” he steps into her and takes both her hands in his, “I DO appreciate the drawer and what it means and I promise to use it.”

“I know, Lucifer, I mean, I appreciate you talking to me about it but I get it. And if I’m being totally  
honest, it’s scary for me too. For so long it’s just been me and Trixie, honestly, letting you in this deeply  
into my life, into my heart, has been natural but, well, it’s still a little scary for me too.”

“Well, now that’s sorted” He grins and kisses her sweetly, “shall we go catch ourselves a killer?”  
“Yes” she chuckles, “but just one more thing, can we agree that if I do anything that freaks you out again  
you’ll just tell me instead of running away?”  
“Devils honor” he holds up two fingers and together they walk inside.

“Chloe! Lucifer!” Ella exclaims when she sees them enter the building, “Boy oh boy do I have news for  
you!” While the trio quickly makes their way to the lab, they see Dan crossing to where they are as well.  
“I’ve got some security footage you’ll need to see” Dan announces, carrying a laptop with a look of anticipation on his face.

“Me first!” Ella announces and continues to talk, “so, I checked the shell casing for fingerprints and  
nada, and so far all the other prints in the office are to other zoo employees. I did a test on the blood  
that we found and so far it’s a mixture of human and PRIMATE blood” she glances at Lucifer who smiles  
broadly at the findings.  
“Wait” Dan interjects, “there is a missing monkey, right?” as everyone nods he continues, “that’s what I  
was trying to show you” turning the computer towards the others in the room he hits play and they all  
squint at the screen that covers the parking lot to see a small monkey quickly moving through the area. 

“Is that….” Chloe trails off unbelieving of what she is seeing.  
“Oh. My. DAD. A monkey with a smoking gun?! I KNEW IT DETECTIVE! We have a homicidal primate on  
our hands!” Lucifer’s level of excitement and laughter is enough to make even Dan feel slightly amused.

“Is that real?” Chloe asks glancing from the screen up to Dan, “I mean, how can that be real?”  
“I don’t know” Dan answers, “But she matches the description of the missing pet monkey.”

“So what do we….”Chloe shakes her head trying to wrap her mind around what she is seeing.  
“Let’s put out an APB on a gun wielding baboon, maybe she’s already called an Uber and is heading back  
to Kelly’s!” Lucifer chimes in feeling much too gleeful over the development. 

“Tarzan’s best friend is running wild in LA with a gun?!” Ella chimes in and while she and Lucifer high-  
five, Chloe clears her throat loudly.

“Okay, I get it, this is bizarre. But there has to be an explanation.”

“Yes, that poor little creature was sick and tired of living for 15 years in a confined space and is ready to  
take back her life! We may have a real-life Planet of the Apes unfolding as we speak!” Lucifer adds with  
passion. 

“Lucifer!” Chloe yelps at him, “this isn’t helping, if the blood was primate blood that means that Sandy  
may be injured. Dan” she turns her attention to him and is annoyed to see his amusement over the  
conversation. Too bad he still didn’t hate Lucifer as much as he did only weeks ago. “Dan!” she snaps  
and he stifles his chuckle.

“Right, I’ll call around to animal shelters to see if anyone reported taking in Sandy” closing the computer  
he exits the room.  
“Okay, while we are on the hunt for a possible killer monkey, I can’t believe I just said that” Chloe  
mutters to herself, “we need to pull phone records. Lucifer? Can I trust you to call the gym that Kelly  
said she was at and check her alibi? Ella, any word on the skin under the nails yet?”

“On it!” Lucifer exits the room.  
“No” she replies, “way too early for that. But, we did find that Bill had a 9 millimeter gun registered in 

his name and apparently kept in his office. So it’s likely his own weapon was used against him.”  
“Interesting, okay well, I’ll check in with Dan and get the phone records going. Thanks Ella and let me  
know if you find anything else.”

Later Dan reports that he was able to find that someone had found an injured monkey and had taken it  
to an animal hospital for treatment across town. 

“Okay, great” Chloe responds, “I’m waiting on these phone reports for Bill and cyber is working on  
getting access to his emails. We need to get ahold of Kelly and have her meet us at the animal hospital  
to make sure this is Sandy.” 

“I can do that, you stay and wait on all the reports”  
“Yeah” Chloe agrees, “and take Lucifer with you, he met Kelly this morning so she knows him and if he’s  
found out her alibi is a lie you two can discuss that with her”.

Dan hesitates but Chloe doesn’t care to continue to coddle her ex-husband so instead she simply turns  
her attention back to the computer and continues to type. 

Dan finds Lucifer drinking from his flask and talking to Ella in the lab, “Hey man, we found the monkey,  
Chloe wants us to head out to talk to the wife again and make sure she can identify it.”

“You and me?” Lucifer asks gesturing from himself to Dan and back again.  
“Yep, so let’s go.”  
Lucifer gives Ella a quick glance as she raises her eyebrows slowly in a show of surprise but wordlessly he  
slips his flask back into his jacket and leaves the building Dan.

The ride is relatively quiet except for Lucifer sharing with Dan that the wife’s alibi had checked out. The  
gym had not only confirmed by her swipe card but also security footage inside the gym that she had  
arrive just after 6 AM and stayed until just before 8 AM. 

“Besides” Lucifer adds after explaining this, “she really didn’t seem to be a killer.”  
“So how can you tell?” Dan asks quizzically.  
“Oh I don’t know, she seemed genuinely upset” Lucifer shrugs a shoulder.

“But I mean….” Dan tries to find the right words, unsure what he’s even asking exactly, “is there  
something about a person that you can tell if they’re…..you know….”  
“Evil? Bound for hell?” Lucifer asks easily with a dramatic flair. 

“Yeah man, it’s just…do you have any special way of telling if someone is…you know…the bad guy?”  
“No Daniel I do not. If I did, trust me I wouldn’t be running around interrogating all kinds of people. I pull  
out DESIRES, I don’t sniff out evil.” A twinge of annoyance. 

“Yeah, sorry I just don’t really fully understand it all”  
“Well, neither do I if I’m being honest, I’m just a cog in the wheel that is my father’s universal machine.  
But, the offer still stands, if you really want to get into the whole heaven and hell, angels and demons  
thing, I’m more than happy to schedule some time for Amenadiel to swing by your place.”

“Ha!” Dan lets out a quick chuckle, “Thanks, not sure I’m all the way there yet but I’ll keep it in mind. But  
I am trying, I know Chloe and Linda are OK with it and I trust them both as much as anyone can be  
trusted.”

“True,” Lucifer contemplates, “you know Daniel, the devil face is jarring if you’re unprepared, I DO  
understand so maybe if I show you my wings that would help you see my more angelic side? They’re far  
less scary.”

“Your WINGS?” Dan looks at Lucifer shocked as his car swerves for a brief moment.

“Well yes, my wings. You didn't think they were exclusive to Michael did you? We both have them, Amenadiel and I, how else do you think we fly to the great  
beyond areas?”

“Wings” Dan mutters, blinking to try and comprehend, “You know what, that’s okay I don’t’ know that  
I’m in a place for that yet but I’ll let you know if and when I am.”

“Very well” Lucifer sighs disappointedly.

“But” Dan continues, pushing out a breath, “I guess the good thing is that with Trixie starting to date in  
a few years, it’ll be nice to have you in our corner, watching out for her.”

“You know, I’ve not thought of that, but yes” Lucifer’s voice takes a hilt of excitement over the idea, “of  
course when she turns 30 and starts to date I will happily terrorize any man who even THINKS of doing  
anything to harm the little imp. You and Chloe just say the word!”

Dan laughs easily at the comment and realizes that he truly trusts Lucifer and the acceptance brings him  
a feeling of peace. 

Kelly is already at the Animal Hospital when they arrive, her eyes are red and swollen and she recognizes  
Lucifer immediately and begins to cry again.  
“Mrs. Kesler” He says kindly, “This is Detective Espinoza, we came as soon as we heard that Sandy may  
have been found.”  
Nodding she wrings her hands, “Yes, someone found her, she was injured, grazed by a bullet but she’s  
going to be OK.”

“Good to hear” Dan intervenes, “Kelly, can you tell us if…”  
“She and Bill got along OK?” Lucifer interrupts trying desperately to keep a straight face, “did Sandy  
know where Bill kept his gun?”  
“What?” She asks surprised as Dan elbows Lucifer as firmly as he can.  
Stepping around him, he explains, “We found security footage of Sandy in the parking lot of the zoo just  
after the shooting and it appeared that she had the murder weapon. Did the people who found Sandy  
say if they found a gun also?”

“WHAT?” She gasps, “A gun?”

“Yes we think it was the murder weapon, whomever shot your husband most likely dropped it and  
Sandy possibly retrieved it and fled.”

“We do think that?” Lucifer asks, bummed his murder-monkey theory is not the popular opinion.  
“Yes Lucifer, we do” Dan says through clenched teeth; turning back to the shocked widow.  
“No one said anything about a gun but yes, Bill had one at work normally. I do know they found Sandy in  
the street near the zoo and the parking lot, so maybe it’s still there?”

“Okay, that helps” Dan assures her, “we’ll check in with you as soon as we find anything more out”  
“Thank you” she says sincerely  
“And, take care of your monkey” Lucifer calls back to her as they leave the clinic. 

Before going back to the precinct, Dan calls and has officers begin to search the parking lot and  
surrounding streets for the murder weapon.  
He asks the officers also check with the zoo to see if anything was reported there to an employee. 

Back at the precinct, Dan and Lucifer head to Chloe’s desk to check in with her and catch her up on their  
visit, explaining her alibi was airtight, the monkey was OK and no gun was recovered from the scene and  
the zoo employees had heard nothing more. 

“Well, I got the phone records back” Chloe begins, “and found out who Bill’s midlife crisis relationship  
was with.”

“Ohhhh” Lucifer sits partially down on the edge of her desk, “do tell”  
“Chasity” Chloe replies, “seems they had a fling for a few months about a year ago and like Kelly said, they did break up but Chasity was obsessively texting him. Going over some of them it looks like Bill had  
changed their schedules so they would rarely cross paths at work and he routinely told her to leave him  
alone; in the last text exchange he advised her that if she did not stop following him and texting him, her job was in danger.”

“Well what a randy place the zoo is turning out to be! Sex scandals, killer monkeys, who knew?!” Lucifer  
exclaims. 

“Okay, but wait” Dan starts, “didn’t Ella say that the victim was roughed up pretty well? Chasity is what,  
5’2, a hundred pounds? Do we really think she could do that kind of damage to his face? It was a pretty 

brutal scuffle.”

“Right” Chloe bites her lip, “well best way to find out is to go talk to her” Looking up at Lucifer, “Care to  
come see if you can get some truth out of her?”

“I’m all yours, Detective” he smiles slyly as he watches her blush slightly while she clears her throat and  
stands up and grabs her car keys.

After they leave, Dan wanders into Ella’s lab as she is at work at her table.  
“How’s it coming?” Dan asks  
Glancing up she sighs, “Okay, not as well as I hoped. The only blood was the victims and the monkeys,  
the casing belonged to the victim’s gun and the gun is still missing. Only thing left really is the skin under  
his nails and I know it wasn’t his but no match so far with anyone in the data base, hopefully we find a  
suspect to match it to. Until then” she trails off as she can tell he’s only halfway listening. “Everything  
OK, Dan?”

“What?” he asks and then shakes his head, “yeah it’s fine I mean….can I ask you something?”  
“Of course” Ella replies sweetly.  
“I know you’ve struggled with your faith before, with understanding good and evil. And I remember you  
said once you thought the devil got a bad rap. What did you mean by that?”

“Oh wow you’re going deep on this one”  
“Sorry” Dan says waiving a hand, “I shouldn’t have…”

“No, no it’s okay, really. I just didn’t realize you pondered all that; but anyways, yeah I mean the devil.  
Well, if you believe most every account, he was an angel who rebelled against his dad, I mean, what  
bratty teenager doesn’t do that at some point, am I right? Anyways, he was punished by being sent to  
hell himself and made to watch over people getting tortured.  
A lot of people think that means he’s all bad, but I mean, if he was then wouldn’t hell just be some big  
party palace for the worst of the worst? 

You know? If he agreed with all the bad stuff they did up here and he was REALLY in charge, wouldn’t he  
just be embracing them and throwing down with them when they arrive? Instead they’re being  
punished so I guess you know, that means God is technically in charge of that and just making his free-  
thinking son do the dirty work for him.  
I mean, it’s not a super popular opinion but that’s how I see it. 

But you know, maybe you should ask Lucifer.”

“Lucifer?!” Dan asked surprised and sure she knows the truth of him by the confidence in her tone  
“Yeah, I mean he is so deep in his character acting he probably has some really intense insights by now.”  
“Oh right” 

“Especially since you two seem to be getting along better” Ella squints her eyes and peers at Dan to see  
if he’ll give any juicy details. 

“Well, you know, we’re trying. Anyways. I better get back to cyber and get those emails. Thanks for the  
chat.”

But after Dan leaves, Ella looks after him with a hint of knowing on her grinning face. 

When Lucifer and Chloe arrive at the zoo, they find Chasity in an area where she was this morning. At  
first she is surprised to see them but then another emotion passes over her face and they recognize it as  
a hint of guilt. 

“Chasity?” Chloe begins easily, “We need to ask you a few questions, do you have a couple of minutes?”  
“Um, sure” she glances around at the empty space.  
“We know you were seeing Bill last year and we know that he ended it and that made you incredibly  
upset. So, did you do anything to harm him today?” Chloe probes.

“NO!” Chasity exclaims, tears coming to her eyes, “I mean yes we did have an affair for a while, but I  
would never, EVER hurt him.”

“But he was threatening your job if you didn’t leave him alone” Chloe adds.  
“He wouldn’t have really fired me, he was just upset and besides that I couldn’t have put Sandy in  
danger I love that little creature.”

“So” Lucifer begins, holding her gaze, “tell me, Chasity, what is that you TRULY desire”  
“I….I…I just wanted him back” Chasity says and then chokes on a sob.  
Frustration rushes though Chloe as she tries to stay calm, “Chasity” she begins, “we need to know where you were this morning as well as if you know of anyone else that may want to hurt him”  
“I was here, out feeding the goats and the elephants, I’m sure I’m on camera. And no one else would  
want to hurt him, he was…” she looks off into the distance and whispers, “perfect.”  
“Okay” Chloe shakes her head, “don’t leave town and we’ll be in touch.”

Once they leave Chloe looks at Lucifer, “What’s your feelings on this, Lucifer?”  
“Well I still say we shouldn’t clear Sandy, I mean, monkeys ARE incredibly strong so she could have been  
the one who beat the ever living daylights out of Bill before shooting him; and maybe she dropped the  
gun and a stray bullet grazed her, explaining her wound.”  
“Lucifer” Chloe mutters his name, “I am sure the monkey is innocent, also something I never thought I’d  
ever utter seriously as a detective. I meant what do you think of Chasity?”  
“Well, she really is adorable in a way that I can understand why Bill would want to reclaim his youth.  
But, sadly I have to agree with Daniel about her ability to engage in a physical confrontation, if Bill was in 

a fisticuffs before his demise do we really think that she could manage the damage done to him?  
She didn’t have any cuts on her hands that I saw and I’m sure she couldn’t have blackened his eye.”

“So if Chasity was still in love with him and his wife had an alibi, what does that leave?” Chloe asks  
absently.  
“His job” Lucifer answers, “didn’t they say that he spent so much time there that it was part of the  
reason he was possibly going to be divorced?”  
“Right” Chloe replies, “And Aaron said that the Board had to elect a new head zoo keeper, maybe we  
need to track down the board members and see what they think.”

“Good idea” Lucifer nods, “Do you think that’s something you can manage from the penthouse tonight?  
I thought I could make you some dinner while you did some work; maybe talk you into staying over?”  
Chloe glances at him with a smile while she navigates traffic, “Yes that’s perfect. But, first and foremost,  
I need to see what Dan found with the emails.” As they pull into the parking garage at the precinct.

When Chloe gets inside the precinct and talks to Dan, he advises her that he has just gotten the emails  
and hands her a thick file as well as shares that he has emailed her all of them as well.  
“Perfect,” Chloe says happily and clearing her throat she looks him in the eye and changes the subject, 

“So, Dan, are you coming to dinner tomorrow?”  
“What?” Dan shakes his head slightly confused.  
“At Linda and Amenadiel’s, we’ve been trying to have weekly dinner and you know you have an open  
invite.”  
“Chloe” Dan lowers his voice and glances around, “I don’t know if that’s a good idea. If I’m ready for  
that.”

“Okay” she tries to keep her voice light but he can see the concern on her face.  
“I’m trying” He says earnestly and she senses the pain in his tone.  
“I know you are” she lays a hand on his forearm for a moment and squeezes it for a second, “it’s really  
no pressure just a reminder that you’re invited. It’s a family dinner and you’ll always be family.”

“Thanks Chloe” He replies honestly and then turning away from each other they each go their separate  
ways.  
Chloe proceeds to packs up some files and her computer and then heads to Lucifer’s. 

Upon arriving at the penthouse with an armful of paperwork, her laptop and an overnight bag slung  
over her shoulder, Chloe steps in and sees the table in the middle of the room. It has food and candles  
on it while the lights are dim and the music soft.  
“Hello Detective” Lucifer calls, appearing around the corner with a bottle of wine in his hands. Seeing her burden, he sets the bottle on the bar and crosses quickly to her.

“Here” Lucifer exclaims, reaching out he takes the papers and computer and carries it to the desk for her 

before turning and crossing back to the table. Pulling out a chair he motions towards it, “Come,  
Detective you must be hungry.”

“Yes” Chloe crosses to him and drops into the seat he has pulled out for her; as distracted as she is by  
the case, she realizes that she actually IS starving.  
Lucifer takes a seat across from her and pours them each a glass of wine. 

The food is delicious but Chloe is quiet, thinking of the case.  
“Everything alright, Detective?” Lucifer asks breaking into her thoughts.  
“What? Oh yeah its fine. It’s great. The food was incredible. I’m just distracted I guess, this case and all.”

“Of course” he agrees, “I’m glad you got some nourishment before you get back to work”  
“Oh I don’t have to……” but Chloe trails off knowing she does need and want to get back to the case.  
“Nonsense Detective!” Lucifer exclaims with a smile, “I should actually make an appearance in the club  
tonight and you have work to do.” Standing up from the table, he walks to her, takes her hand and leads  
her back to the desk she now considers as her second home. 

“Can I get you anything, before I go Detective?” Lucifer turns and smiles sweetly.  
“No” Chloe says absently, “I really just want to dig into this all but will see you in a bit, yeah?”  
“Yes, yes of course!” he replies honestly before kissing her gently and then heading towards the elevator  
for his real job. 

As expected, Chloe spends hours pouring over the case, arranging files and trying to identify if there is  
anything she is missing. After a long while, she realizes she can’t possibly do much more until  
interviewing some board members and she also is exhausted.  
So standing up from the desk, she stretches and then heads into the elevator. Taking it down to the  
nightclub and exiting it she steps up to the rail and looks over the club.

The music is loud and the place is packed as always; it takes her a moment but she locates Lucifer. He is  
standing up from the piano bench, drink in hand and making his way through the crowd. As the music blares, Chloe watches as Lucifer moves about the space. She observes as he raises a glass and cheers a few groups of women, watches as he dances quickly with a few others as he makes his way to the bar where he gets a refill on his drink and stops to chat with a few patrons before slipping through the crowd and settling back onto his piano bench. When he starts playing an upbeat tune and the lights flash around the club, Chloe glances around the bar and thinks of all the different times here, some good and some not so much. 

She also thinks about the day; it was long and she is exhausted but feels a sense of contentment  
knowing that she is one day closer to the truth of catching a killer.  
While she is lost in thought, she is unaware that Lucifer has stopped playing the piano and made his way  
to her side.

“Hello Detective” he declares sweetly slipping an arm around her waist “solved it yet?” Nuzzling her neck slightly. 

“No, not yet” she sighs, her voice betraying the exhaustion of the day, “I didn’t even get into the files  
from Dan yet, I still was trying to go over a few other things that I missed.”  
Pulling back, she bites her bottom lip and gazes up at him from under heavy lashes, “I have an early start  
tomorrow, can I talk you into coming upstairs with me?”  
“Say no more” He bobs and eyebrow and together, hand in hand they go back to his penthouse.  
After a passionate night together, Lucifer wakes up before the sun rises and spends a short time gazing  
at the woman he loves more than anything in the entire universe. She sleeps peacefully with that same  
charming half-smile on her face.  
He tries not to stare too long or he’ll inevitably wake her up in the most  
erotic of ways and then lose the precious time he has to try and accomplish a task he has in mind.  
Soon thereafter, Chloe stirs to the smell of coffee; as her eyes flutter open, she sees a shirtless Lucifer  
kneeling next to the bed with a cup of steaming joe and a grin.

“Good Morning, beautiful” he mutters quietly.  
“How do you ALWAYS wake up before me?” Her tone is both sleepy and annoyed at the same time.  
“Well, I’ve never required much sleep; besides, it’s the only time you let me take care of you” planting a  
gentle kiss on her forehead and setting the coffee on the night stand.

“For a guy who doesn’t lie, we both know that’s not true, but I do appreciate the early morning view”  
scooting up in bed and reaching for the mug.  
“Mmmhmmm, you and me both, Detective. But alas, my motivation in waking you up is not of the  
sexual nature. Something I thought I’d never say in my entire life, personal growth be damned.”  
Chloe laughs heartly, “Okay I’m awake, what is this non-sexual situation, Lucifer?”  
Standing up, he extends his hand, “Come my dear” as she takes it and climbs out of bed.  
Together they walk into his spacious closet and he leads her to a section of it that is empty, a hanging  
rack and two large shelves. 

“For you, darling. I call it Empty Drawer 2.0”  
“Lucifer” she says on a slight gasp  
“What? Is it too much? Not enough, I mean I could always clear out another shelf if we need…” But his  
words trail off as she has tossed her arms around his neck and is kissing him deeply. 

Pulling away with tears in her eyes she says sweetly, “I love you so much, Lucifer.”  
“And I love you, Chloe” he replies kindly but seriously before kissing her again.  
After a beat, he steps back a step and grins at her wickedly, “But wait, there’s more!” Lucifer says  
excitedly, “while you were sleeping, I solved the case!”  
“You WHAT?” Chloe exclaims laughingly.  
“Well the one good thing that happened when you were kidnapped is that I REALLY honed my detective  
skills; now, come let me walk you through what I’ve found.”

Arriving at the zoo, Lucifer and Chloe make their way through the grounds to the sounds of wild animals all around them, until they reach Aaron who is closing the door a massive cage that holds exotic birds.  
“Aaron?” Chloe says in a calm fashion but still takes the young man by surprise.  
Turning he forces a strained smile, “Detective” he returns. 

“We need to just ask you a few more questions about Bill and the other morning when you found him.”  
“Um sure” he replies, tucking his hands into his pants pockets.  
“The other day you said that Bill’s job wasn’t guaranteed to you, but we were able to uncover some  
emails from the board of directors that stated otherwise. Seems it is actually standard for a person in  
your role to be promoted when the head zookeeper leaves…”  
“Or is brutely murdered” Lucifer interjects. 

“Because” Chloe continues without pausing, “it’s much easier to keep the zoo running smoothly than to  
try and train a new person.  
But there’s something else we learned when we, well, when my partner here” she gives Lucifer a quick,  
loving glance, “was going over those emails early today. It seems you had been dating Chasity for quite a  
while until just a few months ago when she broke up with you to have a bit of a fling with Bill; must have  
really been salt in the wound huh?”

“Covetousness IS a deadly sin” Lucifer adds.

“This is all ridiculous” Aaron scowls, “I never would have done anything to hurt Bill.”  
“The real shame here is that you killed Bill for no real good reason, you see, he was interestingly enough, leaving the zoo at the end of the month as a final step to fix his marriage. His wife didn’t even know that  
part yet. We, well, my partner” another loving glance towards Lucifer, “found that out via an email as  
well just this morning.”

“NO!” Aaron exclaims going pale, “he was not leaving the zoo and he and Kelly, they…they…they were getting a divorce. He was with Chasity.”

“You see that’s just it, Aaron” Chloe steps into him, eyes narrowed, “Bill had taken his counselors advise  
and stopped talking about his relationship at work when he and his wife were making amends. He had  
broken up with Chasity and was leaving here, but it all had been kept quiet and was going to be until he  
met with the board next week. His death was in vain.”

“No” Aaron is shaking his head rapidly, “no, no, none of that can be right.”

“Oh but it is, Aaron” Lucifer states, his voice eerily quiet, “you killed a man for no valid reason. But you  
didn’t know that part about Chasity did you? She was stalking him and like any good stalker she was  
delusional about their relationship so you believed her when she told you that they were still together.”  
“They WERE still together!” But his tone was starting to sound desperate.

“Tell me, when you went into his office that morning what happened? Did you confront him and he  
lashed out, possibly told you if you didn’t butt out of his business you’d be fired? Why did you go in  
there to begin with?  
Tell us, what is it that you desire?”

“I…..I….I want it all” Aaron mutters, holding Lucifer’s gaze. 

“I see!” Lucifer exclaims with a smile, “You wanted the job AND the girl and we know for sure you would  
have had at least one of those two if you’d just been patient.”

“So what happened, Aaron? There is no need to lie anymore your hands tell all the story we need to  
know” she gestures to his bruised and battered knuckles, “and we heard from our lab on the way over  
here and they have confirmed that the skin found under his nails are a match for yours by” turning  
towards Lucifer, “what was that percentage again?”

“Oh, um one to one in a bajillion I believe Ms. Lopez stated” Lucifer replies. 

“I didn’t mean to do anything” Aaron’s eyes fill with tears, “I finally had worked up the nerve to tell him  
what I thought about him stealing my girlfriend but one thing led to another and he pulled a gun on me!  
We fought over it and it went off. I didn’t mean to….”

“Except that you were halfway across the room from him when he was shot” Chloe calls him out on the  
lie, “and two shots were fired not one.”

“We’re unsure what Sandy did to draw your fire” Lucifer adds, “and trying to kill an innocent pet is  
downright evil, Aaron!”

“She just got in the way, I didn’t mean to hurt her. I didn’t even want to hurt him, I just….I just…..he had  
EVERYTHING, a wife a house, the top job and it wasn’t enough for him, he had to take my girlfriend too? And all I did was confront him and HE’s the one who lashed out, I never meant to…kill him”

“Turn around, you’re under arrest for murder” Chloe commands with annoyance in her tone as she  
snaps cuffs on him and begins to lead him away.

After Aaron is arrested, Chloe and Lucifer stand in the parking lot, talking.  
“I guess you were right, Lucifer, covetousness was Aaron’s sin. Leading him to a senseless murder” Chloe  
shakes her head sadly. 

“Yes, well, there is a literal place in hell for him, Detective but in the meantime you’ve helped to bring  
justice for Bill.”

“Yeah, well, I’m just grateful we were able to get some answers and closure for his family.” Sighing,  
Chloe shakes her head and then continues, “Well, anyways, I need to head back to the precinct to finish  
the paperwork but I’ll see you at Linda and Amenadiel’s later?”

Seeing Lucifer’s look of combined surprise and confusion Chloe continues, “Family dinner night, remember?”

“Right, family dinner” Lucifer mutters.  
“Hey” Chloe reaches over and lays her hand on his arm, “it’s just dinner and then it’s just you and me in  
the penthouse, yeah?”

There is a slight hesitation and between the two of them they each remember the hesitation and fear  
and surprise when she showed Lucifer the empty drawer.  
A moment goes by and Lucifer looks down at her hand and then raises his eyes to meet her, “I’ll bring  
the wine” a half but honest smile appears. 

“Perfect” Chloe replies a sense of relief and contentment washing over her, “I’m bringing the salad so I’ll  
see you over there in an hour.”  
“Of course, Detective” before sharing a kiss and then heading their separate ways.

Not long after, Chloe arrives at Linda and Amenadiel’s home at the same time as Lucifer and they enter  
and head directly to the kitchen. 

Greeting Linda, Chloe sits down a large dish containing fresh salad as her contribution for the meal and  
Lucifer sets down four bottles of wine. 

Seconds later, the doorbell rings and the trio turns to see Amenadiel open the door and Dan standing  
there shifting from one foot to the other.

“Hey man” Dan says to Amenadiel.  
“Come in, Dan” Amenadiel says kindly.

“HI!” Trixie appears from behind her dad with a grin and squeezes in through the door.

“Trixie!” Dan calls after her but he’s too late as she’s already halfway across the room heading towards  
where the baby is. 

“Come in, Dan” Amenadiel repeats himself while stepping aside as Dan tentatively makes his way inside,  
nervously wringing his hands, “you’re just in time for dinner.”  
“Oh no, we didn’t want to stay for dinner” Dan begins, “I really did just come by to talk for a bit.”

“Dan?” Chloe asks stepping up to him with a look of surprise.  
“Hey Chloe, sorry I didn’t mean to intrude I just called Amenadiel a bit ago….”

“Dan” Chloe says quietly but firmly while glancing over her shoulder to see Trixie already sitting in the  
center of the home, holding baby Charlie and cooing, “you know you’re not intruding, stay for dinner.”

Looking uncomfortable, Dan appears to hesitate before Amenadiel lays a broad hand on his shoulder.  
“What do you say we go outside for a bit, Dan? Have that talk you called about?”

Rather than respond, Dan follows Amenadiel towards the back door.  
Before they get to it, Lucifer steps up to Dan and wordlessly hands him a glass of whiskey before  
slapping him firmly on the back and saying with a sarcastic grin and bob of an eyebrow, “Might need  
this, Daniel!”  
Once outside, Dan stands next to Amenadiel on their patio, back to the house, sipping the  
whiskey he was suddenly grateful he had. 

“I’m glad you came by” Amenadiel begins in his normal, serious tone.  
Dan nods, looks into the dark liquid in his glass before turning and facing his friend, the angel, “Well, I figured it’s time.” he begins, “I’m trying to make some sense of all of it.  
To understand, not just you  
know, for my sake, but for Trixie; I’ve come to accept that Lucifer seems to be in this for the long haul  
with Chloe and so I need to get to a better place with everything.”

“Of course Dan, you’re an amazing father and it’s understandable you’ve been cautious for her sake. I’m  
sorry you had to find out the way that you did.”

“Ah man, you know it is what it is” Dan shrugs slightly. 

“Daniel” Amenadiel puts a strong hand on his shoulder, “I want you to know that I was with Charlotte at the end.”  
“What?” Dan looks at him with shock and pain coloring his face. He remembers Amenadiel telling him  
that Charlotte was in heaven but the reality of what that reassurance means hits him all at once. 

“She died protecting me and I was able to take her home.  
To the Silver City”. 

While struggling with the right words, tears roll down his Dan’s cheeks.  
“I’m sorry Dan, that I couldn’t protect her, I had no notion that we were even in danger.”

“It’s okay” Dan struggles to regain his composure. 

“But it’s not” Amenadiel says with a strong voice, “it’s not OK, she was a victim, she truly was in the  
wrong place at the wrong time and I know that doesn’t make it better, but just know it WASN’T your  
fault, Dan. It TRULY was entirely the fault of Cain…of…Pierce.  
But she is at peace now and one day you’ll be with her again, Dan.”

“But how do you know?” Dan struggles, the tears still flowing, “Lucifer he said he can’t sense or sniff out  
evil so how can YOU know that I’m worthy of a better place? I’ve done some really terrible things.”

Turning his body entirely towards Dan, Amenadiel wraps a hand around Dan’s neck and places another  
on his chest; similar to when he first told him of Charlotte’s assent to heaven, “Trust me Dan, I’ve told 

you before that I’ve seen evil and you truly are not it.”

Dan allows a sob to escape and as he tenses and tries to shove Amenadiel’s hand away, Amenadiel holds  
fast until Dan’s resolve crumbles and he fully breaks down into the waiting embrace of his truest friend. 

Chloe is in the kitchen, opening the wine and putting dressing on the salad as Lucifer steps up behind  
her and slips an arm around her waist “What can I do to help, Detective?”  
Naturally she leans into him but keeps her eyes fixed on the task at hand. 

“Oh nothing, once I’m finished here help me carry it to the table” she says slightly distracted. 

“Surprised Detective Ex has shown up tonight and finally deciding to talk and make a little peace with all  
things above and below?” He releases his embrace and instead leans a hip on the kitchen counter as he  
pours himself a glass of wine and takes a sip.

On a sigh she replies, “Yeah a little surprised, good surprise” she says earnestly but quietly so no one can  
overhear, “I mean, not just for our sake and Trixie, but for his. Dan battles his own demons, he has for as  
long as I’ve known him and I truly do wish him some peace.”

“You know” Lucifer responds as he pushes a strand of her hair behind her ear, “you, my dear, have the  
most gracious heart of anyone I’ve ever known. You truly do make this world and all of us that are in  
your orbit, better.” 

Before he has a chance to kiss her, they hear the front door open, slam and Ella loudly exclaim, “Aye yi  
yi! LA traffic, am I right?”  
She’s smiling broadly, her ponytail bouncing as she bounds down the steps and places a large container on the dining room table. 

“Ella!” Trixie exclaims from the living room floor. 

“Hey Trix!” Ella replies, making her way to the two smallest attendees as Linda crosses to the three of  
them. 

“Hey Linda” Ella smiles up at the hostess, “sorry I was late but thanks for inviting me! Hope I didn’t hold  
anything up, I mean you could have started without me…”

“No” Linda politely cuts her off, “didn’t hold us up, we’re actually just waiting on…” but before she can  
finish the back door opens and Dan and Amenadiel step inside. 

Immediately, Chloe can tell by looking at Dan that he’s been crying but also that he somehow seems  
lighter. 

Sensing the same thing, Lucifer reaches for Chloe’s hand and squeezes her fingers tightly, a feeling of lightness washes over him and he realizes he had not been hoping for this moment until it happened. 

Linda stands near the table and takes it all in, the whispers and looks between Lucifer and Chloe, the  
laughter of Charlie and Trixie and Ella and the lighter gait that Dan has coming back into the house with  
Amenadiel than what he arrived with.  
She feels so much joy and a sense of pride; what if Lucifer and Chloe had never come into her office on a  
case all those years ago?  
Would they all be here together, today? 

As if reading her mind, Lucifer locks eyes with Linda and gives her a knowing smile and slight nod with  
tears in his eyes.  
She’s surprised at the onset of emotion but clearing her throat and lightly clasping her hands together,  
Linda breaks their gaze and exclaims happily, “Dinner is served!”

Dinner is lively and loud, cross conversation, wine and laughter. Chloe notices that Dan seems more  
relaxed and more himself than she could remember him being. 

Mostly it’s Trixie though that makes Chloe feel more content than she ever has. Her daughter has a look  
of pure joy and peace through the meal that makes Chloe incredibly happy.  
After eating, Chloe thanks Linda for hosting dinner and gives her a hug.  
“Of course” Linda says kindly, “without family, what do we really have?”

When Chloe and Lucifer head back to his penthouse for the night, the rest of the group is still visiting  
and the sound of their laughter and conversation follow them as they leave for the night.  
It’s well after dark when they finally arrive.

Lucifer pours Chloe a drink and taking her hand, leads her to the balcony.  
“What a day, huh?” Chloe asks sipping her drink and leaning into Lucifer.  
“That it was; it’s still bothersome that Bill died for no reason.”

“His poor wife” Chloe mutters, “to know that he was making so many changes for her and that they  
were going to be together and happy again only to have this guy take it all away.”

After a silent moment, Chloe turns to face Lucifer, “I couldn’t have done it all without you, I still can’t  
believe you got up that early and read all the emails and pieced this together.”

“Nonsense, Detective, you would have reached the same conclusion, I just beat you to it is all”  
“Yes” she chuckles and wraps her arms around his neck.  
While she kisses him, he holds her tightly around the waist and whispers, “Hold tight” as the sound of  
his wings releasing takes her by surprise.

“Oh” she mutters, her eyes going wide with surprise and excitement.

“Told you mine were bigger” and with one slight movement, their feet leave the ground and they are  
high above the penthouse. 

Chloe keeps her arms around his neck while he holds her at the waist. Easily he uses his wings to turn  
them in a slow circle in the air while he kisses her deeply but gently. 

Pulling apart, she looks down at the city lights far below them and she looks up and around, sees how  
brilliantly white his wings stand out against the blackness of the night sky. 

“Incredible” she whispers, feeling her legs dangling easily in the air but with not an ounce of fear as she  
trusts him with every fiber of her being. 

But his gaze has not left her face, “Yes” he mutters, pulling her closer with one arm around her waist  
and pushing her hair back from her face with his free hand, “it is.”

And while they embrace above the bustling, brightly lit City of Angles, the only sound they hear is the  
gentle, occasional flutter of his wings and the rhythmic beat of one another’s heart.


End file.
